Texas Speech won its second consecutive American Forensic Association national team championship Monday, scoring better than 72 other teams.

Twenty-five UT students of different majors and grade levels went to at the National Individual Events Tournament held at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois.

“This team epitomized the definition of ‘Texas Fight,’” said Benjamin Gaddis, assistant coach of Texas Speech. “They know what it means to stand for the messages and stories that they tell. They know how important it is to argue for those that need the most help. They are fighters and not quitters.”

Marianna Garcia, government and political communication senior and co-captain of Texas Speech, said the team was very close in standings to the other schools by the end of the competition and doubted they would win. Garcia said the win came as a shock.

The competition events included various types of speaking, oral interpretation, poetry and communication analysis.

“It was really extraordinary because the team overcame what seemed like an insurmountable advantage on the part of another team,” said Randy Cox, senior lecturer, department director of Texas Speech and a member of the first Texas Speech team in 1988. “I’m so impressed by what they accomplished, their determination and their will to go all the way to the end and win.”

Cole Hanzlicek, government senior and co-captain of Texas Speech, said last year’s winning team had a large senior class, but this year’s younger team was able to achieve the same result with less experience.

“Comparatively we had the odds stacked against us,” Hanzlicek said. “But we had this young team fighting just as hard, if not harder.”

Prior to this particular competition, the team traveled for eight months of competitions until the national season began this month.

“At the beginning of the year we decided we were going to make a new legacy, and it was going to be built on love and support of each other as a team,” Garcia said. “I think that is what pulled us all together at the end.”

The team will compete again in the National Forensic Association National Championship Tournament in Eau Clair, Wisconsin on April 13-17.

“This win speaks volumes about the potential this team holds,” Hanzlicek said. “I hope to see this exact amount of fight. This tournament proved that you should never give up because you can always pull through at the end.”